Long-Awaited Snowfall

People visit a snowy Jingshan Park in Beijing on March 17. Light snow and sleet fell in Beijing in the morning， breaking the citys longest dry spell in 47 years， according to the municipal meteorological observatory.

Elderly Online

A new report by tech giant Tencent and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences shows that 75.8 percent of people aged 50 and over read the news online， while more than 80 percent can send emojis， thumbs up and digital red envelopes. Almost 70 percent can use a smartphone to take and repost photos or videos with around 20 percent able to create personalized emojis.

The report is based on a yearlong study. Respondents were elderly and middle-aged users of WeChat， Tencents popular instant messaging app. Researchers used methods including big data analysis， questionnaires and face-to-face interviews.

Chinas online population hit 772 million in 2017. Around 10.4 percent of these users were over 50， and 5.2 percent were over 60， up 1.2 percent from 2016， according to the China Internet Network Information Center.

China has an aging society， with 230 million people aged 60 or over as of 2016， 16.7 percent of the countrys total population. This group is expected to increase to a quarter by 2030.

More than 70 percent of elderly web users read online articles， including political， military and healthrelated news.

WeChat has overtaken traditional phone calls to become the most used contact method among Chinas middle-aged and elderly people.

The report also found epayment， map and ride-hailing applications were popular with older generations.

However， this group is also the main target of online scams.

The report proposes a senior friendly online society that includes a sound Internet infrastructure and well-designed software and network security.

“It will require effort from the Internet companies， as well as understanding and encouragement from families，” said the report.

Air Medical Services A hospital in central Chinas Henan Province has set up a rescue fund totaling 2 million yuan （$316，000） to offer free air medical services to critical patients in impoverished areas.

The Henan Provincial Peoples Hospital said it will collaborate with an aviation company to deploy six medical helicopters to offer the services in the province.

The air medical relief will also be available in the event of natural disasters and emergencies. The hospital will organize 10 lectures this year to help the public learn more about air medical rescue.

In 2015， the hospital established an air medical aid network and now has 301 helicopter launch pads across the province.

Social Credit System

The Supreme Peoples Court （SPC） has signed a memorandum of cooperation on setting up a mechanism for sharing information with the Ministry of Civil Affairs （MCA） in order to improve Chinas social credit system.

Chinese courts nationwide can access a network of shared information including marriage registration， basic living allowance， social organization registration， individual income and social assistance， as well as a blacklist of dishonest people or groups， according to the SPC.

The MCA will impose credit constraints and punishment on social organizations included on the blacklist.

The network will help Chinese courts improve effi ciency in the handling of cases， urge dishonest people to implement legal instruments， and enhance the public credibility of the judiciary， the SPC said.

Presently more than 2.2 million violators have implemented court judgements or made reconciliation agreements with plaintiffs under the network of shared information， it said.

Rising Sea Levels

On March 19， Chinas oceanic authority called for measures to cope with rising sea levels.

A report released by the State Oceanic Administration （SOA） said that the average sea level along Chinas coast in 2017 was 58 mm higher than the average level between 1993 and 2011.

Over the past six years， the sea level along Chinas coast remained at a high level compared with the previous 24 years.

The situation is the result of climate change and global warming， which have increased the temperature of Chinas coastal regions and the ocean， according the report.

Rising sea levels will increase the area inundated by sea water， aggravate marine disasters， and harm the ecosystem， said Chen Zhi， an SOA offi cial.

The report said the ability to prevent and respond to disasters should be improved.

The layout of coastal cities and infrastructure planning should take rising sea levels into account.

Emergency shelters and warehouses for disaster relief supplies should be located at a safe distance from high-risk areas， the report said.

Coastal cities should also verify their fl ood defenses and upgrade design standards for important infrastructure projects in the Yangtze River Delta， the Pearl River Delta and the coastal area of the Bohai Sea.

The report also called for the protection of ecological resources， including coastal mangroves， swamps and wetland.

According to the report， the management of coastal water resources must also be strengthened， and the overexploitation of groundwater and land subsidence in coastal regions must be controlled in order to reduce the harm caused by the salt tide， sea water encroachment and soil salinization.

The report proposed pushing forward international cooperation in global marine governance， such as observation and prediction， risk assessment， and the response to rising sea levels.

TCM Hospitals

China now has 4，238 Traditional Chinese Medicine （TCM） hospitals， with 877，000 beds， according to Ma Jianzhong， deputy head of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

The Health News， a newspaper affi liated with Chinas health authority， quoted the offi cial as saying that TCM medical institutions at all levels now account for about 10 percent of the total health and medical resources nationwide and around 17 percent of the countrys outpatients consulted TCM services.

“This indicates that TCM is well accepted by the public，” the offi cial said.

The newspaper said that before the launching of a campaign to boost local-level TCM services in 2012， only 75.6 percent of community health centers had TCM services， with the fi gure having grown to 97.5 percent by the end of 2016.

The coverage of TCM services in health centers and clinics at township and village level increased to 94.3 percent and 83.3 percent， respectively.

First Farmers Day

Xian， capital of northwest Chinas Shaanxi Province， celebrated its fi rst Farmers Day on March 18.

Prizes were awarded to 10 outstanding farmers， the 10 most beautiful villages and 10 outstanding village Party chiefs for their contributions to boosting agricultural and rural development.

The Farmers Day was observed on the second day of the second month according to the Chinese lunar calendar， a day marking the beginning of the busy spring farming period.

“We farmers now have our own day. It is really exciting，” said Wang Xunchang， one of the 10 prizewinning farmers.

The event included various activities including a singing contest， a rural tourism experience and seminars.

“The day provides an opportunity for farmers to put their work on display， which will increase their sense of pride and confi dence，” said Li Lutang， professor at Northwest A&F; University. “It will attract more people to the vitalization of rural areas.”

Immersive Education

Students take a museum study class at the newly opened campus museum of the Qujiang No.2 Primary School in Xian， northwest Chinas Shaanxi Province， on March 15. In 2017， the primary school began introducing museum-related content to its curriculum. Students can learn about museums either in the classroom or on study tours， with the school recently building its own campus museum for a better study experience.

Feast for the Eyes

An exhibitor arranges food during the Sixth Beijing Agriculture Carnival in Beijings Changping District on March 17. Innovative agricultural landscapes， new agricultural varieties and advanced agricultural techniques were presented during the event.

New Tax Exemption

Chinas Ministry of Finance （MOF） said on March 20 that the country will waive income taxes for overseas investors trading yuan-denominated crude oil futures contracts.

The tax exemption， which is to take immediate effect， will cover both institutional and individual investors， MOF said on its website.

Overseas brokerage fi rms will also be exempted from paying income tax on the commissions they earn from dealing in the new futures contracts.

Analysts said that the move aims to attract players to the muchanticipated launch of the new yuandenominated crude oil futures contracts on March 26.

The MOF said that the country will waive income tax for three years for overseas individual investors， but did not specify the period of exemption for institutional investors.

The tax exemption will also apply to other commodity futures contracts which are open to overseas investors as approved by the State Council， the MOF said.

IP Cooperation

U.S. audio company Dolby laboratories （Dolby Labs） announced on March 19 that it has formed a global， strategic intellectual property （IP） partnership with a Chinese smartphone manufacturer.

Dolby Labs said in a statement that it welcomes the Chinese smartphone company， Guangdong OPPO Mobile Telecommunications Corp.， into its community of global partners.

“OPPO， a leader in global consumer electronics， is well-known for producing smartphones incorporating innovative technologies，”said Andy Sherman， executive vice president and corporate secretary of Dolby Labs， whose company is famous for specializing in audio noise reduction， encoding and compression.

The partnership between the two fi rms will encompass Dolbys HighEffi ciency Advanced Audio Coding and JPEG-HDR technologies.

Dolby Labs said that its agreement to share IP-based audio-visual technology with OPPO will help the Chinese smartphone fi rm establish a transformational technology ecosystem.

Adler Feng， director of OPPOs IP Department， hailed the fi rms cooperation with the San Franciscobased company， saying it will enable OPPO to create more remarkable smartphones with exciting technological innovations and spectacular user experiences.

Since its establishment in 2001， OPPO， one of the worlds leading smartphone manufacturers headquartered in Shenzhen， has been famous for its smartphone cameras and mobile photography which has enjoyed huge popularity among people around the world.

An International Data Corporation report showed that OPPO was ranked as the No. 4 smartphone brand worldwide in 2016.

Spring Closure

Fishing boats anchor in a harbor on Poyang Lake in Jiangxi Province on March 20. The fi shing season on Poyang Lake， Chinas largest freshwater lake， came to a close that day.

New Import Tariffs

The Ministry of Commerce announced on March 19 that it will impose anti-dumping duties on imports of methyl isobutyl ketone from South Korea， Japan and South Africa.

The duties will last for fi ve years starting from March 20， the ministry said.

According to the ministrys fi nal ruling， companies from South Korea， Japan and South Africa have been dumping the compound on the Chinese market and such imports have caused substantial damage to the domestic industry.

The anti-dumping rates for imports from two South Korean companies ranged between 18.5 percent and 32.3 percent， the rates for imports from three Japanese companies were set at 45 percent to 190.4 percent， and those from South African products were set at 15.9 percent to 34.1 percent， the ministry said.

It launched an anti-dumping investigation into imported methyl isobutyl ketone in March 2017. Methyl isobutyl ketone， an organic compound， is used as a solvent for gums， resins， paints and varnishes.

Better Rural Finance

China will make rural areas the key focus of developing inclusive fi nance to improve the rural vitalization strategies of fi nancial institutions.

The growth of inclusive loans to farmers and small and micro agricultural businesses should be no slower than the average lending growth， while credit for targeted poverty alleviation should grow at a higher rate， according to a document on promoting rural fi nance issued by the Chinese banking authorities.

By the end of 2018， townships without banking institutions and villages without basic fi nancial services should be cut by over one third， the document said.

Such fi nancial services covered 96.44 percent of villages in China at the end of 2017， while 95.99 percent of townships had fi nancial institutions.

The innovation of fi nancial products and services and the strengthening of the oversight of risk were also highlighted in the document.

At the end of last year， Chinas outstanding loans to farmers， agriculture and rural areas totaled 30.95 trillion yuan （$4.89 trillion）， up 9.64 percent year on year.

E-Commerce Takes Off

A businesswoman shows off her products in a store in Coqên County， southwest Chinas Tibet Autonomous Region， on March 17.

Since 2014， Coqên has been promoting the expansion of e-commerce， with 2，500 local people having received training courses.

Stable Housing Prices

Housing prices remained stable in Chinas major cities in February amid the governments tough purchase restrictions， offi cial data showed on March 19.

As the government maintained purchase restrictions aimed at containing speculative demand， the prices of new housing softened in the countrys biggest cities， while recording slower increases in other major cities monitore d by the government， data from the National Bureau of Statistics （NBS） said.

On a monthly basis， the prices of new housing declined in 12 of the countrys 15 largest cities， while those in another 55 major cities posted slower or fl at growth in February.

The average price of new homes in the four fi rst-tier cities of Beijing， Shanghai， Guangzhou and Shenzhen all fell from the previous month， down 0.3 percent， 0.2 percent， 0.4 percent and 0.6 percent， respectively， according to the NBS data.

On a yearly basis， the 15 largest cities saw their average new housing prices edge down 0.1 percent last month， but growth of average new housing prices in the other 55 cities surveyed accelerated.

The prices of existing homes in fi rst-tier cities declined for the 17th straight month in February.

This came after NBS data revealed in mid-March that growth in property development investment rebounded in the fi rst two months of the year， rising 9.9 percent from one year earlier and accelerating from an increase of 7 percent registered in 2017.

During previous years， rocketing housing prices， especially in major cities， have fueled concerns about asset bubbles. To curb speculation， local governments passed or expanded their restrictions on house purchases and increased the minimum down payment required for a mortgage.

This years government work report reiterated that “houses are for living in， not for speculation.”

“We will support people in buying homes for personal use， and develop the rental market and shared ownership housing，” it said.

Forex Transaction Deficit

Chinas defi cit in foreign exchange transactions for February rose from the amount registered in January.

Forex purchases by banks stood at $124.2 billion， while sales stood at$132.5 billion， a transaction defi cit of$8.2 billion， up from $900 million in January， according to the State Administration of Foreign Exchange（SAFE）.

“Domestic forex supply and demand stood generally balanced last month，” SAFE said in a statement.

In the fi rst two months of the year， Chinese banks bought $279.8 billion of foreign currency and sold$288.9 billion.

Fluctuation in foreign exchange transactions is the main contributor to changes in Chinas foreign exchange reserves.

Reserves came in at $3.1 trillion in February， down $27 billion from January.

TechnoFarming

A farmer carries muskmelons in a greenhouse in Laoting County， Hebei Province， on March 20.

To propel agricultural supply-side structural reform， farmers in Laoting are being encouraged to grow muskmelons during the off-season， and to apply modern technology in developing new species to improve the quality of their produce.